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Auto Industry Confab

US car-makers have neither declined nor accepted an invitation to participate at the International Auto Industry Conference to be held in Tehran on December 1, Sasan Qorbanim, the conference organizer told ISNA news agency.
“Renault, Mercedes-Benz, PSA Peugeot Citroën, and Skoda Auto (a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group) as well as auto parts manufacturers namely Valeo, Siemens and Bosch have already confirmed their participation. Totally, 55 leading car and spare parts manufacturers from Asia and Europe are expected to participate in the conference and there are no restrictions, whatsoever, for participation of any foreign auto companies.” Qorbani said.
The conference provides a platform for the Iranian and foreign carmakers to hold bilateral and multilateral negotiations on the sidelines of the conference to discuss the grounds for boosting cooperation and to consider possible investments in the industry, he added.
Iran’s automotive industry has started to revive thanks to suspended western sanctions on the country’s carmakers under the Geneva Plan of Action (GPOA). Some 521,585 cars were produced in Iran in the first half of the current fiscal year (March 21 - Sept. 22). The figure shows a 74.3-percent increase compared to the same period of the previous year.
The country produced 989,110 cars in 2012, which made it Asia’s eighth largest car manufacturer. Iran’s automobile output faced a 40 percent decrease in 2012 due to the sanctions. The country was Asia’s fifth largest car manufacturer in 2011, with a total output of 1,648,505.